Nixon on film and television

Dan Aykroyd: Chevy Chase made a name for himself in the early days of "Saturday Night Live" as a bumbling Gerald Ford, but Aykroyd's ruthlessly funny impersonation of Nixon was a comic masterpiece.

Dan Aykroyd: Chevy Chase made a name for himself in the early days of "Saturday Night Live" as a bumbling Gerald Ford, but Aykroyd's ruthlessly funny impersonation of Nixon was a comic masterpiece. (Andrew H. Walker / Getty Images)

Philip Baker Hall: Robert Altman directed Hall in 1984's "Secret Honor," an adaptation of Donald Freed's one- man show. Hall gives a bravura performance as the former president alone in his study dictating his candid -- and often racist -- thoughts into his tape recorder.

Philip Baker Hall: Robert Altman directed Hall in 1984's "Secret Honor," an adaptation of Donald Freed's one- man show. Hall gives a bravura performance as the former president alone in his study dictating his candid -- and often racist -- thoughts into his tape recorder. (Los Angeles Times)